Red infectious waste bags are in common use today. Red infectious waste bags, readily identifiable because of their distinctive color, are plastic bags found at central locations throughout hospitals or other health-care sites. They are used for the disposal of infectious waste so as to maximize sanitation in and around hospitals or the like. When any such bag is filled, it must be promptly removed and disposed of appropriately and a new bag placed at the location of the removed bag for future use. In order to insure the use of such bags, their convenience must be enhanced to the maximum.
The present technology has no system or technique for the quick, simple, convenient and cost effective removal of a single red infectious waste bag from a supply. As a result, the chances of a person removing a filled bag and not replacing it with a red bag are increased. This increases the possibility that the absence of such a bag at its location will result in a health care worker disposing of infectious waste in a container not intended for such infectious waste. Nonsanitary results could result.
Another shortcoming of the present technology is that red infectious waste bags in use today are normally very large and located at a limited number of centralized locations. As a result, there is an increase in the frequency of people utilizing such bags for deposits of noninfectious material which causes increased costs for sanitized disposal of the red bags which contain noninfectious materials. In contrast to this, the present invention contemplates a larger number of smaller bags located at a larger number of locations throughout a health care facility to maximize their use, increase their convenience, discourage use for other than infectious waste, etc., all with increased efficiency and cost effectiveness.
Bags in roll forms are in wide use today. Consider, for example, sandwich bags found in many home kitchens today. Such bags are roll form with perforations evenly across the opening of the bag being pulled off the roll. Heat sealing along the three sides remote from the opening couples the upper and lower faces of the plastic forming each bag. Also known are bags used to cover clothes at commercial laundries. Such laundry bags are similar to sandwich bags except that they are much larger. They are supported in roll form at an elevated location. Their lower ends are opened for being pulled down over the clothes to be bagged. Their upper ends are perforated at the sides with a central slit through which the hanger passes. Such techniques for dispensing bags from a roll require the user to use two hands, an inconvenience to the user.
A further variation of bag dispensing from a roll is found in a system commercially available from the Rhinox Corporation. Such system includes bags in roll form with a dispenser to support such roll and to facilitate the sequential dispensing of individual bags from its dispenser. Such system has a slot formed in the dispenser with a finger and associated recess formed in the adjacent edges of the dispenser slot. The finger and recess cooperate to separate each bag from the next adjacent bag as it is being dispensed. The finger and recess cooperate with a slit at the center of the adjacent bags between perforations on opposite sides of the slit. Such system is deployed vertically during operation and use, a design defect rendering the system of less convenience and reliability.
One last variation of bag dispensing from a roll is found in a system commercially available in Europe. Such system includes bags in roll form with a dispenser to support such roll and to facilitate the sequential dispensing of individual bags. Such dispenser is in the form of a wall-mounted quarter cylinder. The quarter cylinder has a finger extending forwardly from the leading lower edge of the dispenser. The finger functions to separate each bag from the next adjacent bag as it is being dispensed. The finger cooperates with a slit at the center of the adjacent bags between perforations on opposite sides of the slit. Such system has an open top rendering it less than acceptable in terms of sanitation.
Prior art patents relating to more conventional dispensers are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,112 to Bourgeois and U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,382 to Suominen as well as U.S. Design Pat. Nos. 297,415 to Gavin; No. 304,136 to Severini; and No. 325,311 to Mygind.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved system for facilitating the sequential dispensing of individual bags from a roll comprising a roll of bags, the bags being formed together in a roll, each bag having perforations along the leading edge to facilitate its separation from the next following bag and an elongated slit centrally located between the perforations, a dispenser for receiving and supporting the roll of bags comprising a housing of a generally semi-cylindrical configuration, the housing having an interior end and an exterior end, a transverse opening formed in the housing at its interior end, a transverse slot formed in the housing at its exterior end, with the transverse slot separating the housing into an upper portion and a lower portion, lips formed in the upper portion and the lower portion of the housing on opposite sides of the slot with the lips being in a curvature in a direction opposite from the curvature of the remainder of the housing, a finger formed in the center of the slot extending upwardly from the lower portion adapted to receive a slit in the region between adjacent bags, a recess formed in the center of the slot extending upwardly in the upper portion of the housing adapted to receive the finger, and flanges extending outwardly from the dispenser adjacent to the transverse opening and a bracket adapted to receive and support the dispenser.
It is a further object of the present invention to dispense bags in a more simple, convenient, quick and cost effective manner.
It is a further object of the present invention to separate bags from a roll one-handedly.
It is a further object of the present invention to utilize a finger and recess in a slot of a bag dispenser apparatus which, in cooperation with a slit between adjacent bags of a roll, ensures proper separation of the individual bags being dispensed.
It is a further object of the present invention to construct bag dispensers with reverse curves adjacent to the output slot to maintain the leading edge of the following bag in position for subsequent removal.
It is a further object of the present invention to position the lower half of an output slot more outwardly than the upper half to ease loading, threading, and separation of bags to be dispensed therefrom.
It is a further object of the present invention to promote the sanitation in hospitals and other health care facilities for patients, workers, visitors, etc.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying claims.